Harry Potter and the Badger’s Den
by jraeross
Summary: When Harry finds out about the Hufflepuff Sleepover, he knows that he has to find a way to sneak in. This little headcannon has been with me for a while now, figured I’d finally put it on paper, sort of. If a oneshot counts as paper anyway...


Harry watched as the little figure on the map pantomimed knocking on the top barrel twice, then the second barrel from the left on the bottom once. Doing the same caused the middle barrel on the bottom to pop open.

Grinning, Harry crawled through the opening, miraculously managing to stay under his invisibility cloak.

HHHHHHHHHHH

(Two Weeks Earlier)

By the looks of things, all of the champions in the tournament knew about the dragons. Everyone that is, except Cedric.

Harry hid in an alcove outside the great hall, waiting for Cedric to pass. When he did, a quick *diffindo* would get him to stop for a second.

"Look guys, you don't need to worry.", Harry heard Cedric saying. "Like I told you at the Hufflepuff sleepover last Friday, I feel good about this task. If the goblet judged me worthy, then I've got a chance at this."

Harry was about to release the spell when the enormity of what had been said hit him.

Hufflepuff Sleepover.

A sleepover with all the Hufflepuffs.

The house full of the innocent, loyal, and cuddly.

Having a sleepover.

In that instant, Harry had bigger things to worry about than a dragon. He *needed* to get into that sleepover, somehow.

But how would he find out when the next sleepover was happening?

"Hey Cedric!", he called out. "I need to tell you something about the upcoming task."

HHHHHHHHHHH

Once through the barrel, Harry invisibly tiptoed down the hallway and set about his business. First things first, he took a couple of potions procured from the Weasley Twins, for a fee. The first grew his hair slightly, covering his scar, and turned it a nice chestnut brown. The second increased his bodyweight by about 50%, while the third changed his eye color to a light blue. Along with a simple notice me not amulet from owl order, he figured he'd blend in just fine.

He then waited until the Hufflepuffs started going down to the common room in his pajamas before taking off his cloak when he wouldn't be noticed, and joining the march.

Over in the common room, plushy purple sleeping bags (perhaps the same ones the headmaster had summoned last year, he mused) were covering the floor, some had even been laid out on the tables to make room.

Harry took one of the sleeping bags near the wall and was prepared to mark his stealth mission off as a success. Regrettably however, he had forgotten one important detail.

Hufflepuffs are friendly.

Despite his notice me not, he was almost immediately swarmed by Hufflepuffs trying to make a new friend. It didn't take them long to realize that *no one* knew who he was, however.

"Hey Cedric!", Wayne Hopkins shouted out.

Harry cursed internally. He should have known he'd get caught. It was time to face the music.

"We've got another new Hufflepuff here!", Hopkins continued. "Funny how they keep cropping up on sleepover days, huh?"

Cedric scratched his head. "Yeah, I suppose the do normally show up during sleepovers… Weird."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief. Somehow, someway, he had avoided detection.

"So what's your name, newbie?", one of the puffs asked.

"Piers Polkiss.", Harry responded, using the first muggle name that came to mind.

"Well, we're glad to have you Piers. Wanna play a bit of exploding snap?"

What followed was perhaps the best night of Harry's life, playing games, sneaking to the kitchens for treats, idle chatter. For the first time since his parents had died, Harry felt like he truly belonged.

HHHHHHHHHHH

"Come on, wake up! You're gonna be late for breakfast!"

Harry grumbled before rising out of his sleeping bag. He trudged over to the restroom to brush his teeth and get day clothes on, when he stopped, gasping in front of the mirror. The person he saw staring back at him was not "Piers". It was Harry. The potions must have worn off in the middle of the night.

He made to dart out the door, but was caught by several of the badgers.

"It's okay Harry, we all knew who you were right from the beginning. You didn't do anything to change your voice, you see.", Anthony Goldstein said.

"And before you worry about getting in trouble, you should probably know that there are actually several honorary badgers that infiltrate the house every sleepover. I mean, have you really never noticed that Neville doesn't sleep in the Gryffindor tower on Fridays?"


End file.
